On the morning of August 24, the Xavier community gathered in the gym to celebrate its first Mass of the year – The Mass of the Holy Spirit.

Some students (Freshmen especially) were nervous because they didn’t know what to expect. Others just wanted the day to be over so the weekend could start. But once the Mass began, the whole student body united as one.

Senior Joe Afable said of the Mass, “I thought the message…was [to] love others, love God, love Jesus, you know, be yourself, open up.” When asked if he thought it would be better to have Mass in a chapel rather than the gym, he replied, “If they have the money, then I would say build a chapel, but for now I guess I could agree with the gym.”

The volunteer choir sings a Communion hymn. Consider joining!

One of the main purposes of the Mass was to create a sense of unity within the Xavier community and to help the Freshmen realize that they belong in the Xavier community. Freshman Laurissa Carrillo believes that the school did an excellent job in this arena: “I think it did make us feel more welcome. From the very beginning, I’m sure everyone could tell we were very nervous and [that] no one knew what to do… but during [the] Mass, you could feel that most of the panic was gone. You were comfortable and you had such welcoming and helpful people around you. I think it helped the Freshmen feel much more welcome.”